CANNABIS farmers are setting up secret factories in wealthy suburban and rural areas around Macclesfield to avoid being caught.

The illegal workers are using £1m homes and farmhouses in Cheshire rather than setting up in inner city areas.

More than FOUR TONNES of marijuana plants – worth millions of pounds - have been seized since January, according to the man who then destroys them.

Cheshire police have raided and shut four cannabis farms since the beginning of September.

They recovered more than 700 plants from a large farmhouse on Salters Lane, Siddington, and a thousand more at a million pound detached house in Mere.

One Siddington resident, who didn’t want to be named, said she was amazed at what was going on.

There was also a small farm found in a Disley back garden last week and police have also busted a cannabis factory at a large home on Sand Lane, in Nether Alderley.

The bushes are being grown in remote, plush properties that have space for more plants which then yields more cash.

Inspector Gareth Woods, of Macclesfield neighbourhood policing unit, said: "This is basically the next stage in criminals trying to outwit the police by growing in unlikely and affluent areas. Often, dealers will lure immigrants over with the offer of a job and money, and they get stuck running farms in these remote locations. What is good is that people are letting us know and we are getting tip-offs. But I would warn landlords to make sure they know what’s going on in their rented properties."

The boss of a specialist company that incinerates cannabis for police in the North West has spoken of a ‘large shift out of cities’.

He said that around 40 to 50 per cent of that haul – more than four tonnes - came from large properties in Cheshire and other rural areas.

Two years ago, the figure was around 10pc or less said Mr Rigg, a former Greater Manchester police officer.

Mr Rigg’s firm, based at a secret location in Greater Manchester, was called to the three Cheshire locations to destroy the plants.

He said: "The (cannabis) farms we’re seeing now are in a much better class of property; much bigger, rural properties. The last few we visited (in Cheshire) were worth a few bob, into the millions. I think (the farmers) are moving to rural areas because they think there’s less chance of being discovered. Also, in a big property, you can get a big grow on. That obviously means more money. You get a return of around £250 on a single, fully grown plant. If you’ve got a thousand plants or more, that’s a hell of a lot of money."

Superintendent Geraint Jones, of Cheshire Constabulary, said: "The individuals who cultivate cannabis generally source vacant properties in areas where their activities will not be considered suspicious. This could include rural areas where properties can be more secluded and there are fewer people around to notice unusual patterns of activity